In front of Rabbi Yochanan’s grave is the tomb of Rabbi Horowitz, known as Rabbi Isaiah ben Abraham born around 1565 and died 1630. He is famous for his book Shnei Luchot baBrit. He is often called the holy Shelah, an acronym of the book’s title. He served as head of Frankfurt’s Jewish religious court until the Jews were expelled from the city in 1614. In 1621 he moved to Israel and became head of the Ashkenazi community in Jerusalem. The local Turkish ruler imprisoned him for ransom money; after the ransom was paid, Rabbi Horowitz fled to Tiberias.
Rabbi Horowitz taught that every action should be motivated by the desire to draw closer to God. ‘….Even when occupied with his necessary bodily needs, he should not abandon that devotion. When occupied with business let him think, I am occupied but I look to the Lord to obtain profit…and with it I shall perform a good deed….when he eats or sleeps let him have in mind…that his body should be strong to engage in Torah and perform the
commandments.’
commandments.’